Why I queried EFCC boss on recovered funds

By Daniel Kanu

The Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, on Sunday clarified what she called an “innocuous letter to the acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Ibrahim Magu, on cash recoveries by the Federal Government.”

A press statement signed by the minister’s Special Adviser, Media and Publicity, Oluyinka Akintunde, said the clarification became necessary to correct media misrepresentations.

In a memo dated February 9, signed by the Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, and addressed to the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ibrahim Magu, Adeosun demanded that the anti-graft agency should provide the right information about the recovered cash assets from May 2015 till date.

In the memo titled: Summary of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission Recoveries from May 2015-January 2018, Adeosun queried Magu’s figures, noting that the recovery figures attributed to the agency by various media reports do not reconcile with the records of the ministry.

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The secret memo was apparently leaked, hence the “clarification.”

Below is full text of the clarification

Adeosun Clarifies Letter to EFCC Boss on Recovered Funds

The attention of the Honourable Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, has been drawn to media reports misrepresenting her innocuous letter to the acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Ibrahim Magu, on cash recoveries by the Federal Government.

2. The Minister wishes to state explicitly that the letter dated 9^th February, 2018, was a standard letter aimed at improving controls over the recovered funds.

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3. There is no ulterior motive behind the letter as alleged in some media reports but to enable the reconciliation and harmonisation of the figures on recovered funds by the Government.

4. For the avoidance of doubt, the EFCC has subsequently provided the requested information and reconciliation is ongoing.

Signed:

Oluyinka Akintunde

Special Adviser, Media & Publicity to the Hon. Minister of Finance

Federal Ministry of Finance

25^th March, 2018

The minister’s memo to Magu suggested discordant tunes in President Muhammadu Buhari’s inner cabinet as two key officials were set for head-on collision over the actual amount recovered in the last two years by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, under Ibrahim Magu stewardship.

In 2017, President Buhari had asked the EFCC and other agencies to provide detailed submission of amount of monies so far recovered since 2015 when he took over.

Buhari, it was gathered, wanted an inventory to present to those who criticize the government for failing in the anti-graft war, rather than rely on propaganda to give the impression that it was achieving results.

But with different officials of the Federal Government eagerly beating their chest over how much has been recovered from former functionaries, there is a growing confusion in Abuja over the actual amount already recovered.

In May 2016, Minister of Information, Mr. Lai Mohammed, said government recovered N78.3 billion, $185 million, £3.5 million and €11,250.

In addition, he disclosed that 239 non-cash recoveries were made with interim forfeiture amounting to N126 billion, $9 billion, £2.4 million and €303,399.

He also put anticipated repatriation of looted funds from offshore sources at $321.3 million, £6.9m and €11,826, the minister added.

These figures are, however, different from those recently given by acting chairman of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Ibrahim Magu, late last year at the seventh session of the Conference of State Parties to the United Nations Convention Against Corruption in Vienna, Austria.

According to Magu, EFCC monetary recoveries between May 2015 and October 20, 2017 were in excess of N738.9 billion, which is equivalent to over $2.9 billion, adding “this does not include smaller currencies like Durham, CRA and British Pound,” he added.

“Within this year alone, the commission recovered stolen assets running into several millions of US dollars and billions in naira. This include the sum of $43 million recovered from Deziani Allison-Madueke, Nigeria’s former Minister of Petroleum and N2 billion spread in seven accounts within three Nigerian banks laundered from the Federal Capital Territory Police Command Salary Accounts,” he explained.

While appearing before the House of Representatives Committee on Financial Crimes to defend the 2018 budget estimates of his agency, Magu said the commission in 2017 alone recovered a total of N473, 065,195,977.50; $98,258,124.97 and €7,247,363.75 in 2017.

He said other funds recovered from “corrupt” persons and organisations by the EFCC last year included GBP 294,851.82; Dirham 443,400.00 and South African Rand 70,500.00.

He explained that, as part of the assets recovery drive of the anti-graft agency, the commission secured a final forfeiture of N32 billion and $5 million recovered from former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, to the Federal Government’s coffers.

The EFCC boss added that the commission also secured the final forfeiture of N449 million and over $43 million discovered at Legico Plaza in Victoria Island, Lagos, and Osborne Towers, Ikoyi, Lagos, respectively.

According to him, other recoveries by the EFCC in 2017 were N329 billion from petroleum marketers by its Kano office; withholding tax of over N27.7 billion from different banks; €6.6 million from Nigerian Ports Authority; about N1.1 billion recovered on behalf of Assets Management Company of Nigeria and over N4 billion from subsidy fraud.

However, Adeosun in the memo made available to The Niche said the records in the data based on information available to the office of the Accountant-General do not match.

“It has however, come to the attention of the Ministry of Finance, the use of recovery figures in the Media reports by the EFCC that do not reconcile with the records of the Ministry. You are therefore, kindly requested to clarify where these cash recoveries have been deposited and provide accompanying evidence,” she said in the memo.

In the letter dated February 9, 2018, and personally signed by her, entitled “Summary of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) recoveries from May 2015 to January 2018”, the Finance minister wrote:

“This is to notify you of the records of cash assets recoveries in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from May 2015 till date based on the information available to the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (attached).

“It has, however, come to the attention of the Ministry of Finance, the use of recovery figures in media reports by the EFCC that do not reconcile with the records of the Ministry.

“You are, therefore, kindly requested to clarify where these cash recoveries have been deposited and provide accompanying evidence.”

It will be recalled that one of the reasons given by the Senate for refusing to confirm Magu for the position was his inability to give figures of recoveries as of the time he was being interviewed by the committee of the whole house.

Some Nigerians have also accused the anti-graft agency of converting part of recovered looted funds to personal use by agents.